FARC invite former soccer star René Higuita to be a candidate in Colombian 2018 elections

Timochenko and Ricardo Téllez, both leaders in the former FARC terrorist group, invited former Colombian soccer player René Higuita to be a candidate for the FARC-EP party in the forthcoming 2018 Colombian elections. They offered Higuita a post as either a senate or presidential candidate.“René, no matter where you are, I send you my kindest regards from the FARC congress, which is about to become a political party. We will wait for you to help us and maybe you could be in one of our candidate lists for the Senate or as President”, Téllez told Higuita. Téllez also highlighted that Higuita was not just a celebrity, but someone who would work for peace in Colombia.Higuita has a history of attending FARC events, as he a year ago in the 10th National Guerrilla Conference in which the FARC Secretariat approved the peace accord.“Granda”, as the FARC leader is also called, stated that he invited Diego Maradona to last Sunday’s inauguration of their congress as well, but that he could not attend because he was on a trip in the UAE (United Arab Emirates).The FARC Congress concluded on September 1st. The list of the new party’s leaders, regulations, and official party name is expected to be released early this week.

The FARC were engaged in a 5 decade long war with the Colombian government, a war that killed more than 220,000 people and displaced millions. In 2016, the group was granted status as a political party, funds, and guaranteed seats in congress in exchange for laying down their arms. Most of the terrorist organization obliged, though several factions continue to fight the guerrilla war.

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